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Loadouts
A loadout is equipment that is supplied to a person for a specific purpose. This varies depending on location or preference. In SURF, each fleet has two loadouts, with the exception of the Fleet of Honor that has only one loadout, adding up to 5 loadouts. Each member of the Fleet is expected to pick one of the loadouts that is permitted for them to use. For example, the Fleet of Rage can only choose between the Warrior or Gladiator loadout, but it cannot choose the Spec Ops loadout as the Fleet of Stealth uses it. Below the specific loadout type are tips and tricks to help with getting better with the weapons and armor ability, listed in their respective order. Some tips and tricks cross over to multiple weapons. Weapons that are not part of a loadout are not explained, but sometimes mentioned during training sessions. Ask a Fleet Master for specific info. It is important to note that Covenant plasma weapons (with the exception of the Plasma Repeater) do more damage to shields, while UNSC ballistic weapons do more damage to health. In addition to this, Spartan and Sangheili species have different gameplay mechanics, explained on the Home page. All weapons, for the sake of ease, will be referred to by their actual name, abbreviated. For example, the Concussion Rifle's official name is the Type-50 Directed Energy Rifle/Heavy, but will be referred to as T50. However some weapons have this same name, like the Plasma Rifle, Plasma Pistol, and Spiker both have T25. They will be represented as T25R, T25P, and T25S respectively, and apply to others like this. Multi-Loadout These are weapons that multiple loadouts or fleets possess. In order to prevent redundancy, they are here: * Plasma grenades (T1) are the Covenant's version of the UNSC Frag grenade. Every loadout contains 2 T1s. Instead of relying on ricochets and proximity, the T1 rewards trajectory and timing. The stick properties of the T1 makes it an extremely effective weapon against infantry and vehicles alike. The wide blast radius can also kill or injure most if not all passengers of a vehicle. The only way you can get rid of a T1 stuck on you is either Armor Lock, if it is stuck on a weapon or your armor ability, then quickly swapping said weapon or ability for another and quickly escaping. The former requires Armor Lock, and the latter relies on sheer luck or extraordinary map knowledge. That said, the chances of either of these happening are low, and thus T1s are a very reliable way to guarantee a kill if they are used properly. * The T31 Needle Rifle uses needles similar to the Needler, but in a semi-auto rifle form. It has less zoom (x2) than the UNSC DMR (x3) and deals less damage overall, but fires quicker, is more accurate, has more ammo capacity, and best of all guarantees a fatal explosion when three needles are in a single enemy. It can still headshot for an instant kill. Due to the lack of damage, it is best to only use the T31 to bring down shields when the target is at a distance. When the target is close enough, swapping to a plasma based weapon (Like the T25) is a much better weapon against shields. When the shields are down, the T31 shines brightest, as the most shots you can miss the head but not the target is 3 needles. With 18 more to spare, it's practically impossible to miss unless you are killed beforehand, the enemy hides in cover, or you somehow miss all of the shots. Take note of the reticle bloom--as the circle in the crosshair increases in size, and radius of where your needles will go also increases, making you more inaccurate. Similar to all other weapons with bloom, pace your shots and pay attention to the size in order to be as accurate as possible. * The T51 Plasma Repeater is a slightly different version of the UNSC Assault Rifle. Compared to the T25R Plasma Rifle, each shot contains more battery percent (200 shots to deplete, compared to the T25R's 400 shots), takes 2 more shots to kill a Spartan (negligible due to the initial RoF), higher bolt velocity, increasing accuracy, decreasing rate-of-fire, manual cooling, and has a targeting aid. When attacking someone far away, the T51 gives you two options: fire in short bursts to keep the bloom low, or fire until the T51 starts to overheat and slow down, thus giving you constant, almost pinpoint accuracy at the expense of a few battery percent, firing speed, and a few seconds to cool down. Due to the manual cooling, this can greatly improve prolonged firefights, as the enemy will stop shooting to reload or cool down the weapon, while you will keep shooting (albeit slowly, but accurately). This also gives you quality-of-life control over your weapon as you choose when it cools down, allowing greater versatility for its uses. The T51 is also one of three plasma weapons in the game that deals more damage to health than shields (others being the Focus Rifle and Concussion Rifle), so be sure to use the T51 when an enemy has no shields and you do not have any precision weapons. In game modes that use bottomless clip, this can be fired indefinitely for a constant beam of pure plasma hell. * The T25P Plasma Pistol '''is a very underrated weapon in the weapon sandbox. This is probably due to its unreliability to hit someone with the plasma projectiles at range, however its intended use shows its true glory. It wears down shields faster than any other plasma weapon, and its overcharge ability can get rid of it instantly (at the cost of its use for a moment) or disable all vehicles for a few seconds. When used properly, this can be one of the best weapons in the game not because of damaging power, but due to its utility for disabling shields and vehicles. The shots can track targets when overcharged, but they don't track very well. They do travel fast and can damage unshielded targets. When a fully-shielded enemy is attacked this way, they take a small amount of health damage as well. Even if the shot doesn't hit the target, it does a small AoE damage to those in the vicinity. When the user has proficient aim, it can take around 7-10 shots to kill a Spartan with full shields, adding to its lethality. When using it against vehicles, it is not advised to use it when the vehicle is close and zooming away; it is best to use it when the vehicle is moving away or towards you, in your general direction. If it cannot be avoided, the overcharged bolt is still a projectile, and thus you need to lead the shot in order to hit it. The chance of hitting the vehicle increases dramatically if an extra set of prongs appear in the red crosshair, meaning the shot will track the vehicle over a distance. Fleet of Rage The Fleet of Rage works well in offensive maneuvers, and thus work best as infantry on the front lines. Their weapons and tactics correlate with their aggressive nature. Warrior The Warrior loadout is a T25R Plasma Rifle, a T31 Needle Rifle, Sprint, and 2 T1 plasma grenades. Usable only by Minors, UItras, and Generals. * As explained above, the '''T25R Plasma Rifle uses plasma and as such deals much more damage to shields compared to human weapons, but inflicts less damage to health. Because of this, it is much easier to take an enemy's shields down with the T25. It is, however, more inaccurate than the T31 and are projectiles instead of the needles, which are hitscan and thus instant. It is best suited for close- to mid-range combat, and it is recommended to lead your target in order to hit targets that are farther away. Take care to know when the T25 will overheat--more bolts equals higher chance of overheating. As the T25's charge goes down to 10% and lower, it will begin to misfire, resulting in unreliability and a loss of DPS. The quickest way to kill is to bring an enemy's shield down with the T25, then sprint (or not) to a melee. However, the T25 is paired with the T31, thus if a target is out of melee range, a quick swap and a headshot can kill instantly as well. * Sprint is an armor ability that increases movement speed at the cost of lowering your weapon during and some time after deactivating Sprint. Sprinting is useful for closing gaps, such as making a long trek to a location or rushing an enemy quickly. Because of the biology of Sangheili, they can sprint further and faster than Spartans. You can also get an extra horizontal boost by jumping just before Sprint ends, keeping the momentum of the sprint in the air for an extra second. However, running into an enemy while sprinting disadvantages you as you will need extra time to put up your weapon and position yourself, something the enemy would have already done. To combat this, it is best to zoom past the enemy to disorient them (jumping before ending sprint as discussed), and by the time you recover you two will have an even chance. Although if the enemy moves back with you, evades back, or has a quick reaction time they can take you down anyway. Remember that everyone can hear you panting as you sprint--this can give away your position, as perceptive players can note the sound (male or female Spartan, or Sangheili), judge if they are an enemy, and prepare before you know they're there. Use Sprint when it is safe to traverse a distance. Gladiator The Gladiator loadout is a T50 Concussion Rifle, a Type-25 Plasma Pistol, Armor Lock, and 2 T1 plasma grenades. Usable only by Generals. * The T50 Concussion Rifle is a very powerful barrage weapon that fires plasma in arcing bolts. The bolt inflicts an area-of-effect (AoE) damage and "kicks" everything within its radius. Although it does less damage its counterpart, the UNSC Grenade Launcher, it has more ammunition. Regardless it fires very quickly and thus a lack of care can deplete its ammo very quickly. It doubles as both a disorienting weapon and a damaging weapon, as the bolts produce a flash of light, blinds the target, throws them in the air, is very loud, and fires quickly. It is possible to stop a sprinting or evading target dead in their tracks due to the recoil, and can completely flip all vehicles except for tanks and flying vehicles, given enough bolts impact the target. Due to this, it works well as an all-around weapon, but only when used sparingly as its available and reserve ammo is low. It works best at close- to mid-range combat, but using it within very close range, like point blank, is discouraged due to the blast radius having the capability of damaging yourself and knocking yourself around. This can be exploited by using it to make a slightly higher jump, similar to a grenade jump (Think of Team Fortress 2's Rocket Jump mechanic). The bolts do have a relatively slow travel time compared to other plasma bolts, so lead your shots in order to hit the enemy. * Armor Lock is a little more controversial than other armor abilities, as players do not like wasting time. This is essentially what Armor Lock does: it wastes time for 5 seconds, giving both the user and the attacker(s) time to recover. Armor Lock essentially makes you invulnerable for this time, in addition to repelling incoming explosive projectiles and removing plasma grenades to disabling, damaging or even destroying incoming vehicles. However, in doing so, the user is immobile and cannot perform any act. Once depleted, it discharges a short-range EMP blast effect that can disable vehicles and destroy shields, and pushes other players away from the user. Armor Lock can be activated for a maximum duration of 5 seconds. After a delay of 3 seconds, the armor ability will rechage for 11 seconds to a fully-charged state. The armor ability varies with how long the ability is used; the longer the player activates the ability, the farther the final EMP blast radius will be. Taking damage while in Armor Lock increases the speed that the ability depletes. When activated, Armor Lock instantly sheds stuck plasma grenades and needles (from Needlers or Needle Rifles). Armor Lock cannot be used to replenish health and shields--damage dealt to you while in Armor Lock does not actually deal damage, but it prevents your shields and health from regenerating. When enemies melee an Armor Locked player, the attacker is temporarily stunned, which can be exploited. Also, as a means to prevent an Armor Lock user from simply being gunned down as soon as they exit Armor Lock and having no chance to defend themselves, there is a quarter-second interval after Armor Lock is released in which the user remains invulnerable - enough time for a player to exit Armor Lock and take a single step in whatever direction they want to go before becoming vulnerable again. A neat trick against a fellow Armor Lock enemy is to wait for them to use Armor Lock, get close and activate your own Armor Lock. When they exit, the EMP will not affect you, but when you exit you will affect them, bringing their shields down and open for a quick melee kill. Use Armor Lock to quickly destroy a vehicle or person, prevent explosive deaths, or to buy time. Fleet of Honor The Fleet of Honor is a fleet of defense, protecting, supporting, or defending an individual, group, or location. Their strategies revolve around this principle. However, they only have one loadout. Sentry The Sentry loadout is a T51 Plasma Repeater, a T2 Gravity Hammer, Drop Shield, and 2 T1 plasma grenades. Usable only by Zealots. * The T2 Gravity Hammer is a melee weapon used by the Jiralhanae (Brutes) to designate chiefdom. It is analogous to the UNSC Shotgun and Covenant Energy Sword. There are multiple reasons as to why a Sentry has a Hammer instead of a Sword: the Sword is canonically only used by very high ranking swordsmen, is has more kill potential, it can deflect projectiles, instantly destroy vehicles if timed properly, and can kill multiple people in one swing. The Hammer's main focus is AoE, which works very well against protecting a key location or person (which multiple enemies may be trying to capture or kill). What is often misunderstood about the Hammer is that due to this AoE, you do not have to be point blank to kill someone. The range of which the explosion affects is roughly 4.5 meters, which is within the small circle on your motion tracker. If an enemy is within that circle and you have the Hammer out, swinging it will result either in the enemy's death or dropped shields. Remember that you have two weapons; the explosion can send the target away from your effective range, leaving your Hammer useless--be sure to swap to your Repeater if they escape. Chances are, their shields are down, and the Repeater deals great damage to health, so swap weapons. A detriment is that the Hammer looks big and imposing, making you a large target, whether or not you have it equipped or not. The AoE can also damage teammates, so it is advised to not have multiple Hammer users crowd around one enemy. An enemy with a shotgun can instantly kill you before you can swing, therefore be sure to use your Repeater and stay out of range if you see a shotgun user. Additionally, take care on swinging the Hammer when no enemies are present, as the charge will deplete whether or not it hits something. Also notice the equip animation--you cannot swing until your character has rested their right hand on the handle. The swinging animation itself also does not happen instantly, thus you need to plan ahead a split second in advance so that you can be out of range when swinging, but within range when the explosion occurs. * Drop Shield, when used, produces a large protective bubble around you that replenishes your health (not shields) while inside of it. The shield strength is roughly 3x the strength of a Spartan's shield. As it takes constant damage, it changes color until it eventually dissipates in a loud boom, either from damage or from it naturally deactivating after 15 seconds of its initial deployment. Due to its AoE protection abilities, this works very well for the Fleet of Honor's protection duties. Even though Sangheili naturally regenerate health back to full, a Drop Shield can replenish it on command. The drop shield expires and deactivates once the armor ability meter is at 3/4 full--after 15 seconds--unless it is prematurely deactivated from damage as previously stated. A new drop shield can be deployed 20 seconds after the first one was deployed, giving a 5-second window where the player is exposed. Damaging a drop shield will not reduce its lifespan unless it is completely destroyed. Also, a damaged drop shield will, if no further damage is done, repair the damage and return to full strength. To continue to deal damage to you and your allies, enemies must go inside of dome, exposing themselves to teamwork and close-ranged weapons should they be utilized. You do not have to be inside ''the Drop Shield to use it effectively--for example, if a sniper is on the same level as you, you can put a drop shield in the way to prevent them from sniping you as you run away from them, leaving the Drop Shield behind as a large impenetrable barrier, being a literal shield in the way. A drawback can be that the shield is containing, meaning that everything (except players) outside stay out, and things inside stay in. If an enemy throws a grenade inside the shield, everything inside can be killed, since the use of a Drop Shield implies someone is low on health, shields, or is protecting against an outside force, thus the grenade can be used to scatter and make the users vulnerable to what was attacking them. Another drawback is that it can go through floors. If used on the second floor, people on the first floor can use this to their advantage, ally or not. It is also very bright and big, making it noticeable from long distances. Additionally, if used in a large open area, it will buy you time to make an escape but also buy the enemy time to attack, so use with caution. '''Use the Drop Shield when the VIP or a group is in danger.' Fleet of Stealth The Stealth Fleet is essentially a special operations fleet, dealing with supportive roles like sniping, infiltration, and cleanup kills (picking off/stealing vulnerable targets). Spec Ops The Spec Ops loadout is a T31 Needle Rifle, T25P Plasma Pistol, Active Camouflage, and 2 T1 Plasma Grenades. Usable only by Minors, Spec Ops, and Rangers. * Active Camo, when activated, bends light around the user, providing almost perfect camouflage against all angles. Note how it bends light, it does not allows light through the user. Active Camo is best used against mulitcolored and disorganized surfaces, such as rocks or the dark, to allow the slight distortion of light to be nearly undetectable. Even better, stay at a distance to become almost impossible to see, however at that distance it is preference as the enemy might not see you anyway. When Camo is in use, it employs a radar jammer effect, producing dummy enemies above, below, and on the same level as enemy players as seen through their motion tracker (does not produce physical dummies). Again, either best used when the enemy is distracted by a large group of allies or far away when the dummies aren't seen by the enemy, as the jammer can be a double-edged sword--it can disorient enemies, but also can be used to indicate to them that someone's in Camo, and slowly judge the area where you may be hiding. Due to this, Active Camo where the motion tracker is disabled is incredibly powerful. A downside (other than the aforementioned jammer) is the restriction of movement and actions--moving faster than crouching speed results in the Camo slightly revealing the color of the user, making it less effective. It is important to note, however, that the first person viewmodel exaggerates the reveal when moving; you are still in some form of slight translucence when moving at full speed without attacking, although you are still much easier to see compared to completely transparent when standing still. Shooting with Camo active completely reveals you for a split second. All sounds are also muffled to the user, limiting tonal awareness and thus being vulnerable to things like a grenade, a weapon sound, or a vehicle. Extremely attentive players can notice your position against a surface, as your character model slightly moves as part of its idle animation, and thus very perceptive players can see you even if both of you are completely still. Camo is best used very close or very far, while the enemy is distracted with something else. Ranger The Ranger loadout is a T31 Needle Rifle, T33 Needler, a Jetpack, and 2 T1 Plasma Grenades. Usable only by Rangers. * The T33 Needler is a very different weapon compared to the other plasma weapons the Covenant has. For starters, it homes in on enemies when the crosshairs are red. Because it takes 6 needles to take out a Spartan's shields and 6 more to combine and explode, with 24 needles available, the perfect scenario would result in 2 dead Spartans in a single T33 magazine. Although if a few needles miss, you can still guarantee a Spartan kill if you don't die first or if they don't hide in cover. However, Sangheili shields are slightly stronger than a Spartans--requiring 7 needles to take down their shields--making a magazine only capable of killing one Sangheili and severely damaging one, even if all needles hit. The needles can only explode on unshielded targets, thus you can bring the target's shields down with another weapon or a melee hit, then use the 6 needles to combine. This way you can kill 4 people in one magazine, regardless of what species. The supercombine can easily be avoided by ducking into cover for long enough to waste needles on the cover, greatly injuring the victim but gives them time to kill the attacker. This can be to your advantage or disadvantage, so remember this. * Spartans and Sangheili have different models for their Jetpack, as the Sangheili instead use what is referred to as an Anti-Gravity Pack. Due to this difference, the Sangheili counterpart keeps them in the air longer and rises them faster. The longer you have the Jet Pack activated, the longer you'll be able to remain in the air but at the consequence of having the ability depleting faster. Thus, it is recommended that you use the ability in bursts, which would deplete the ability less than a sustained flight. Additionally, fall damage still applies to Jet Pack users should they fall from the air. The Jet Pack is incredibly useful for traversing map terrain, notably vertical stretches, and can also be used to heckle enemies--if you have a mid- to long-range weapon and the enemy has a short-range, you can fly in the air to get distance from them. You can disorient enemies as well, attacking them from above, with the target unaware of where you actually are. Best of all, you can completely negate fall damage by deploying it a few seconds before hitting the ground, reducing the force you land with and minimizing or getting rid of fall damage. Likewise, you can use this as a parachute for when your flying vehicle is being damaged beyond repair. Exiting and slowly flying down to safety can save your life. However, there is a small delay before it begins to cancel a fall. The Jet Pack also only enhances vertical movement, with other directions being slower than walking speed (unless you are launched by some cannon or explosion). Additionally, the Jet Pack is loud, and your character model contrasts the sky, and thus you are a much bigger target. The Jet Pack can negate fall damage, but only if it is used as a cushion--if you do not activate it quick enough, fall damage will kill you. The Jet Pack is best used as a utility for traversing vertical distances, dodging attacks, or heckling, but only use it when attacking when you are confident you can get kills using it. Fleet Masters, Minors, and Officers Due to the limit of 5 loadouts, not every rank can have a loadout. Fleet Masters All Fleet Masters are expected to choose one of their fleet's loadouts, but replace one of their weapons with an Energy Sword. * The Energy Sword is a status symbol of nobility, proficiency, and experience. The Sword is another counterpart to the UNSC Shotgun and the Brute Gravity Hammer. Unlike the Hammer, the Sword shines in dueling, or 1v1 combat. This is evident in its lunge capability, instant lethality, and parrying mechanic. When the aiming reticle is red and the Sword is equipped, you can lunge towards the target. This usually happens very quickly and catches the victim by surprise, or leaves them in terror. In addition, every successful attack dealt to an enemy is always an instant kill, unless when they are surrounded by a vehicle, utilizing Armor Lock, or in the rare scenario where the enemy has overshields. This counts for melee swipes, wide slashes, jumping swings, and lunging stabs--they are all instakills. On a successful hit, 10% of the battery is lost, adding up to 10 people that can be killed using a single Sword. Armor Lock does not deplete the charge. However, even if the blades are depleted and absent, you can still use the hilt as a makeshift club, but its attack potential is minimal. Parrying is a feature that applies to melee with Swords--in a Sword v Sword battle, attack swings and lunges can be blocked, dealing little damage to both users. This can continue and it is possible to kill both swordsmen by simple constant parrying. You can also parry with a perfectly-timed melee attack with any weapon when a sword user lunges at you. The melee attacker will suffer a lost shield and a huge health detriment, but will still live a few more seconds. Additionally, it takes time to lunge towards a target, so quick fingers can get you killed during a lunge (giving you a Bulltrue medal), commonly achieved with a Shotgun v Sword matchup. Since the Sword is useless at anything other than close range, using your other weapon is pretty much necessary, unless you have the capability of consistently closing gaps or ambushing, such as rushing with sprint, baiting with a dome shield, or hiding with camo. Minors and Officers Minors, due to their inexperience, can experiment with different playstyles and fleets to see which best suits them. However they can only choose lower-tier loadouts, being Warrior and Spec Ops. The use of the Sentry loadout is at the discretion of the Fleet Master of the Fleet of Honor, due to the importance of proper use of the Gravity Hammer (possible betrayals and waste of energy) and map knowledge. This privilege is approved or denied for each individual by the Fleet Master, when prompted or at their leisure. Officers, however, have full liberty to select any loadout. This is due to the extraordinary amount of effort necessary to acquire the Officer permutation, and implies masterful use of all weapons and strategies. Officers may use the loadout respective to their duties as they see fit (For example, they cannot use loadouts that belong to the Fleet of Rage or Stealth to defend; they must use the Sentry loadout, as the Fleet of Honor uses it exclusively to defend), and can use either low-tier loadouts (Warrior and Spec Ops) or high-tier loadouts (Gladiator, Ranger, and Zealot). Officers cannot use Energy Swords, unless they are taking it from an enemy or when dueling. Minors and Officers can swap between fleets as they please, but they cannot constantly switch and have a maximum of 3 switches before they must stay in their fleet for 2 months. When the 2 months ends, they can swap another 3 times maximum.